Discursive Construction of Civil Society in Political Clashes: The Case of Poland

Abstract

Although post-socialist civil society has been widely studied, scholars have rarely examined how political conflict reshapes its very meaning. This article addresses that gap by comparing the discursive constructions of civil society put forth by Poland’s liberal-left and conservative-right symbolic elites. Analyzing 53 opinion pieces published in Gazeta Wyborcza and Rzeczpospolita (2015–2023), I demonstrate that both camps instrumentalize the term as a tool for mobilization and legitimation. The liberal-left frames civil society as a pluralist watchdog that safeguards democracy and European norms, while the conservative-right associates it with national identity and cooperation with a strong state. Each narrative marginalizes civic actors that fall outside the partisan divide, thereby deepening polarization. These competing frames reflect a broader struggle between a pro-modernization project anchored in EU integration and a national-conservative alternative, which narrows public perceptions of Poland’s diverse civic landscape.